Brisbane City Council rails against bus disability safety

DISABILITY groups say Brisbane City Council is trying to sidestep new disability standards to avoid spending $260,000 on handrails for buses - despite this week pledging $4 million for CCTV to be installed throughout the city's fleet.

A spokeswoman for the Australian Human Rights Commission said the watchdog was still evaluating the council submission for an exemption, which claims that spending $259,340 on upgrading handrails on more than 350 buses to comply with the standards would constitute an "unjustifiable hardship".

Council has until December 31 to ensure buses meet the new requirements - which would involve installing handles with a wider diameter and improved location to assist those with "fine motor control" issues - but has requested a five-year exemption.

Lord Mayor Graham Quirk - who has previously championed disability issues and whose daughter Sarah has cerebral palsy - reiterated his commitment to improving disability access and pointed to council's plan to spend $88 million over four years on upgrading the city's bus and ferry stops to make them more accessible.

"When I first became Lord Mayor I made it clear that improving disability access in Brisbane was high on my agenda and I believe public transport should be accessible to everybody," he said.

Queenslanders with Disability Network CEO Francis Vicary slammed council's request for an exemption, saying it was "not good enough" and would leave many disabled residents feeling "devalued".

Council's submission acknowledges that no public consultation was sought to avoid committing "additional funds and effort".

It based its decision to proceed without seeking public comment on the fact that there were "no recorded instances" of complaints.

"It doesn't matter if they don't have any complaints," Ms Vicary said, adding that many people with disabilities found it difficult to lodge them. "If the handrails don't actually comply with the standards, then it's not a negotiable position."

Council's Public and Active Transport chairman Peter Matic said the application for exemption was lodged so that 350 older buses that were being replaced by new vehicles over the next four years would not have to be upgraded.

But should the exemption be denied, he said, council would spend the $260,000 and replace the handrails, "even though 50 of these older buses will be retired by June".

Queensland Parents for People with a Disability president Michelle O'Flynn said she was disappointed council had lodged the submission.

"So they can't afford to fix the handrails on the buses but they can stick cameras in them?" she said. "I'm guessing they'll have CCTV evidence of the people actually sustaining severe injuries, so that when they get sued they'll have evidence of their own negligence."